11/20/2004

Nagoya Dolls

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. Aichi Folk Art - 愛知県  .
- Nishio clay dolls, see below
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Dolls from Nagoya /名古屋張子だるま



Nagoya Daruma with a headband
The eyes can be painted in later.

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In Nagoya, two types of dolls are produced, clay dolls and papermachee dolls.
Let us look at the clay dolls first.


Nagoya Clay Dolls - Nagoya tsuchi ningyoo

名古屋土人形

CLICK for more photos

They are made in the tradition of Fushimi clay dolls.
In the beginning of Meiji period, one doll maker went to Fushimi (Kyoto) to learn the trade and brought it back to Nagoya. Before the war there were two families producing them, later only Mr. Noda Suekichi was left. He made a lot of different clay dolls but very few Darumas. One of his favourite is a tiny clay bell with a Daruma or a Princess Daruma. When he passed away at age 86 in 1989, nobody picked up the trade after him. A lot of his works are exhibited at the Castle of Nagoya.

The two sisters Hatsu and Koo Yamada also made claydolls during the beginning of the Showa period, but their art has died out too. They were also called after the temple where they were sold as talismans to protect the silk production, Eikoku-ji Clay Dolls.
Please look at the HP to see more examples.
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~SA9S-HND/agal-941-2.html


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Dolls for the Childrens Festival
Nagoya Sekku Ningyoo  名古屋節句人形

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野田さんの土人形 clay dolls from Mr. Noda
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

They have been out of production in the early Meiji period, but revived now by the Noda family 野田家, as souvenirs for the shrine Atsuta jingu 熱田神宮 and other shrines and temples in the town. During the Edo period they were quite popular, it seems Ito Tomomatsu 伊藤友松 started the tradition.


牛若丸 Ushiwakamaru doll
from 野田末成 Noda Suenari

. 牛若丸 Ushiwakamaru .
源の義経 Minamoto no Yoshitsune - (1159 - 1189)


. . . CLICK here for Photos !

There is also a
ningyoo zuka 人形塚 memorial mound for dolls with the famous "manju eating boy"
built in 1933.




There is even a telephone card with these dolls:



. Museum with dolls from Noda .



MORE photos
source : nagoyatutiningyo


. manju kui ningyo 饅頭食い人形 Eating Manju .


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Papermachee Dolls form Nagoya
Nagoya Hariko  名古屋張子




Most of the Nagoya papermachee dolls were made before the war but the trade has not continued. Mr. Noda made some too, mostly Sumo wrestlers and some legendary figures.
名古屋市内では種々の張子と土人形が作られていました。しかし、張子は戦前に、土人形は平成元年(野田末吉氏の死去により)、廃絶したとされています。
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~SA9S-HND/agal-942-1.html

The characteristic of a Nagoya Daruma is his white headband with blue dots.
The first Daruma of this kind,
Hachimaki Daruma 鉢巻だるま, were made in Kyoto, but during the beginning of the Meiji period they started to be made in Nagoya, too. They were quite popular for a time, but nowadays there is just one producer of them and they are hard to get.
Some are made without eyes, but most of them have eyes and wear a headband with blue dots. Their facial expression is rather simple.

The lady Daruma at the left side is a roly-poly doll called
"Okororin" おころりん. She is a talisman for the silk production.
Have a look at more pictures on the HP.
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/%7ESA9S-HND/agal-943-1.html


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. Nagoya karakuri ningyoo 名古屋 からくり人形
mechanical dolls from Nagoya .


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The lunchbox producer DARUMA in Nagoya has a large picture of Daruma on the wall of the building.



名古屋の駅弁 Nagoya Daruma Bento


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The Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya
Tokugawa Bijutsukan  徳川美術館

. Reference .

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. Nagoya matsuri 名古屋祭り Nagoya Festival   

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Nishio ningyoo 西尾人形 Nishio Dolls

Nishio town 西尾市 is a leading producer of powdered green tea.
The Mikawa area has been inhabited since prehistoric times, as attested by finds of pottery shards from the Jōmon period and the megalithic Kofun tomb in Kira, the oldest in the Mikawa Province.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !



Nishio no inu 西尾の犬 dog from Nishio

. 大黒 Daikoku .

. 恵比須 Ebisu .

. Kira no Akauma 吉良の赤馬 .
Kira Kozukenosuke 吉良上野介

. kirara suzu きらら鈴 Kirara bells .

. rokkaku goma 六角ごま spinning top with six corners .

. Ushiwakamaru 牛若丸 .


西尾土人形 Nishio Clay Dolls

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. Toys and Talismans from Japan .


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- #nagoyadolls #nagoyadaruma #nishio -
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Mikawa Dolls Dakini

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Dolls from Mikawa, Toyokawa and Toyohashi
三河、豊川、豊橋の人形

Mikawa Papermachee Dolls / 三河張子

The young boy is holding a Daruma on his lap, trying to tighten the headband of the Daruma. The headband of my doll is green whith white dots and the face of Daruma is really indivudualistic, almost painful with two big wrinkles between the eyebrows (see the picture at the beginning of this story). The doll is about 24 cm high. The boy has some hair painted on the head and a full circle on the top of his head, where the remainings of hair after shaving are indicated by a light-blue paint. His upper eyelids are colored with slight red. Inside is the inscription of the year Taisho 8 (March 22, 1919).


source : korasho


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Mikawa papermachee dolls
are made in the towns of Toyokawa and Toyohashi and many other places in Aichi prefecture. Let us talk about the dolls from Toyokawa first. Mikawa Daruma is one of the Toyokawa papermachee dolls and sometimes also called "Good Luck Daruma" (fuku Daruma 福達磨).
They were first made by the Naitoo Family around 1811 内藤助十. There used to be 15 different types, some resembling the Darumas from Matsumoto City. Daruma's head is rather eggshaped and usually the eyes are not painted and some have a real beard. Other forms are in the form of Lady Okororin, Daruma with a headband and Mini-Darumas (mame Daruma).


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Mikawa Clay Dolls / 三河土人形

CLICK for more photos

Since suitable clay was found in the area and has long been used to make tiles, the tile makers began to form some simple dolls too. The range of figures is wide, from Hina dolls to the Gods of Good Luck, the Beckoning Cat and other dolls for Good Luck, like our Daruma san. Famous Kabuki actors are also part of the repertoire. Nowadays these dolls are very rare. Dolls from various small villages and towns in the area are together called "Mikawa Clay Dolls".
The Toyohashi Clay Dolls, which we will meet a little later, are among them.

In the whole of Aichi prefecture, there are about 21 locations producing clay dolls, 12 of which are in the Mikawa area, especially in Western Mikawa. Most of these dolls were sold locally.

Mikawa clay dolls also used to be called "Oboko" おぼこ. They are simple in form and very colorful, especially the dolls of warriors and Kabuki actors. Since the dolls had a familiar feeling they were well loved in former times, when children had no toys and things were scarce.


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Papermachee Dolls from Toyohashi
Toyohashi hariko 豊橋張子



Okororin Daruma おころりん

These dolls have been made by Magoyoshi Yoshida 吉田孫吉 during the Taisho period, including Tenjin Sama and Daruma dolls in the Nagoya tradition.
They were sold at the Toyokawa Inari Shrine but it was not enough to make a living, so the production stopped very soon. Later in 1947, the grandchild of Mr. Yoshida, Mr. Shigeji Nishimura 西村茂治 took up the production and made a lot of Daruma dolls too. They came in three sizes and were quite similar in appearance to the Toyokawa Daruma dolls. They were a little bit more round, the face slightly pink and the facial features painted in bold strokes. Another type was a set of five Darumas in different colors of white, black, yellow, green and blue. Other Daruma came as a piggy bank or painted with beautiful robes used as wedding presents in the Toyokawa area.



fox mask from Toyohashi



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Clay Dolls from Toyohashi,
Toyohashi tsuchiningyoo 豊橋土人形


As we have seen, they belong to the tradition of Mikawa. Since the early Meiji period, they were made in the town of Toyohashi by Koojiro Sugiura (杉浦幸次郎). His pupil, Ichitaroo Takayama (高山市太郎) started making these dolls in nearby Asahi town. Magoyoshi Yoshida, whom we met making papermachee dolls, also made clay dolls in the tradition of Mr. Suigura.
Now his pupil Mr. Nishimura  西村茂治 continues to make these dolls.


source : www.asahi-net.or.jp

Nishimura san makes about 60 different forms, like Tenjin Sama, Fukusuke, Kabuki actors and also Daruma dolls. Nowadays he makes dolls only after an order is placed. He has two versions of a standing Daruma, one is about 23 cm high with a pleasing face and long earrings.
Mr. Hachiroo Takayama tells us about painting a face for a doll:
"The face is not fancyful or outlandish, but it is very difficult to paint a pleasing simple face."



mai-musume 舞い娘 dancing girl
about 26 cm high,
made by 吉田孫吉 Yoshida Magoyoshi


Look at a great collection:
source : sahara/reikai


Here you find some folk dolls of Aichi prefecture, with some clay bells from Mikawa in the middle.
source : www.asahi-net.or.jp


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source : t-matusita/otiai

This beckoning cat with Daruma is now made in Gifu, Ichihara town.
Originally the craftsmen came from Mikawa.

市原の土人形は岐阜県瑞浪市市原


Daruma in the year of the Sheep
. 市原土人形 clay dolls from Ichihara .


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Mikawa 三河 
is the name of the area around the towns of Toyohashi and Toyokawa along Mikawa Bay in Aichi prefecture.


The famous Toyokawa Inari Shrine 豊川稲荷 is visited by many devotees every year and many Daruma dolls are sold there during the New Year period and on Ocotber 5th, the memorial day of Daruma san. Let us look at this shrine first. Toyokawa Inari Shrine is one of the three big Inari Fox shrines in Japan.

In the precincts are a Shinto shrine and a Buddhist temple. The temple is called Empukuzan Myoogonji (妙厳寺) or simply Toyokawa Kaku. Constructed as a temple of the Soto Zen sect in 1441 by Master Tokai Gieki Zenji, it enshrines the deity Dakini Shinten (ダキニ真天、だきに天), which was introduced by Master Kanzan Zenji (1217-1300) as a guardian deity. The Godess Dakini appeared to him on a rough sea trip home from China and when he settled down, he carved a beautiful image of Dakini riding on a fox, carrying a sheaf of rice. She soon became the protector of the Mikawa area and many people prayed to her for good business, for having many children and other worldly benefits, especially while Mikawa was famous for its shipbuilding industry during the Edo period. The famous magistrate of Edo, Ooka Echizen, who came from Mikawa, was one of the strong believers in Dakini Shinten and had a temple in her honor installed in the precincts of his home in Edo, as we will see a little later.



Toyokawa Inari fox amulet



Toyokawa Kitty amulet




Toyokawa Dakini amulet 南無豊川七福大尊天
南無豊川荼枳尼真天






Homepage of the shrine
http://toyokawainari.jp/


. Amulets and Talismans from Japan . 



. Toyokawa Inarizushi 豊川いなり寿司 Sushi .


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Toyokawa no Dakini Shinten 豊川のダキニ真天
The transformation of the wrathful Hindu Godess Dakini emerged within Esoteric Buddhism in Japan. Originally a man-eating demoness, she was converted by the Vairocana Buddha into a powerful life-engendering deity. In the complex interaction of Buddhism, Shinto, and Taoist yin-yang practices in medieval Japan, this icon embodied near-magical powers of fecundity that were invoked not only in enthronement rituals but also in personal contexts.
She is also called Dakiniten or Dakini-Ten (Dakini Ten). The story of Tamamo no Mae is also related to the Fox Godess. She was at one time the consort of an Indian king. Later, she became the concubine of Emperor Toba (1103-1156,) but she was believed to actually be a nine-tailed golden fox. Now this is a theme of the Puppet Theater Bunraku and Noh.
Here are some pictures of Dakini Ten from Museum Collections.
http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/co_rec_acq_2001a/co_rec_asia_2000.274.htm

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. Folk Toys from Aichi and Nagoya .


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Dakiniten (Vajra Daakini)
荼枳尼天


quote
A dakini (Sanskrit: डाकिनी ḍākinī; Tibetan: khandroma, Wylie: mkha' 'gro ma, TP: kanzhoima; Chinese: 空行母)
is a tantric deity described as a female embodiment of enlightened energy. In the Tibetan language, dakini is rendered khandroma which means 'she who traverses the sky' or 'she who moves in space'. Sometimes the term is translated poetically as 'sky dancer' or 'sky walker'.

The dakini, in all her varied forms, is an important figure in Tibetan Buddhism. She is so central to the requirements for a practitioner to attain full enlightenment as a Buddha that she appears in a tantric formulation of the Buddhist Three Jewels refuge formula known as the Three Roots. Most commonly she appears as the protector, alongside a guru and yidam, but Judith Simmer-Brown points out that:

The dakini, in her various guises, serves as each of the Three Roots. She may be a human guru, a vajra master who transmits the Vajrayana teachings to her disciples and joins them in samaya commitments. The wisdom dakini may be a yidam, a meditational deity; female deity yogas such as Vajrayogini are common in Tibetan Buddhism. Or she may be a protector; the wisdom dakinis have special power and responsibility to protect the integrity of oral transmissions

In Japanese Buddhism
Dakini-ten in Japan


(She always appears in the form to have ridden on white fox.)

During the decline of the Heian period, the Dakini image was mixed together with images of foxes and half-naked women, acquiring the names Dakini-ten (Dakini-deity, 荼枳尼天),
Shinkoō-bosatsu (Central Fox Queen-Bodhisattva, 辰狐王菩薩), and
Kiko tennō (Noble Fox-heavenly Queen, 貴狐天王).

In the Middle Ages the Emperor would chant before an image of the fox Dakini-ten during his enthronement ceremony, and both shogun and emperor would pay honors to Dakini-ten whenever they saw it. Although Dakini-ten was said to be a powerful Buddhist deity, the images and stories surrounding it in Japan in both medieval and modern times are entirely drawn from local kitsune mythology, having no parallels in China or India.

The modern folk belief, often printed in Japanese books about religion, is that the fox image was a substitute for the Indian jackal, but the jackal is not associated with Dakini anywhere. It was a common belief at the time that ceasing to pay respects to Dakini-ten would cause the immediate ruin of the regime. Likewise, in the Genpei Jōsuiki it is claimed that Taira no Kiyomori met a kitsune on the road and that his subsequent performance of Dakini-ten rites caused him to rise from an unimportant clan leader to the ruler of the entire nation.

In early modern times the Dakini rite devolved into various spells called Dakini-ten, Izuna, and Akiba. People who felt wronged in their village could go to a corrupt yamabushi who practiced black magic, and get him to trap a kitsune and cause it to possess a third party. Reports of possession became especially common in the Edo and Meiji periods.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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CLICK for more photos

Dakini
Weibliche Gottheit in einer Inari-Halle für Fuchsgottheiten.
Dakini war eigentlich ein Dämonen-Gefolgsmann des Höllenfürsten Emmaten, der in der Hölle die Herzen der Menschen fraß.
In Japan allerdings mehr als buddhistische Inari-Version des traditionellen Shintoo verehrt; gewährt reiche Reisernten.
Später in Edo auch oft von Kaufleuten verehrt; es gab zahlreiche Inari-Schreine in der Stadt und auf Privatgeländen (yashiki shin, yashiki bokuro).
(Altes Sprichwort über verbreitete Dinge in Edo: Überall gibt es Iseya-Geschäfte, Hundescheiße und Inari-Schreine.)
Besonders am Neujahrstag besuchten die reichen Händler in Edo Inari-Schreine (Shintoo: Fushimi Inari, Kasama Inari u.a.; Buddhismus: Toyokawa Inari).
Der Fuchs ist ein Bote der Gottheit (myoobu), sowohl im shintoistischen als auch im buddhistischen Glauben.
Dakini ist eine Inkarnation der Amaterasu Oomikami und des Monju Bosatsu.

Ikonografie:
Reitet auf einem weißen Fuchs, als Bote der Gottheit.
In der rechten Hand ein aufrechtes Schwert, in der linken das wunscherfüllende Juwel.


.Buddhastatuen ... Who is Who
Ten  天  (Devas)
 

.Buddhastatuen ... Who is Who   

Ein Wegweiser zur Ikonografie
von japanischen Buddhastatuen

Gabi Greve, 1994


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In Japan the dakini is understood to be a fox spirit, a were-fox. At the shrine Chiba-Narita, there is a Dakiniten festival held in February.

Inari is generally associated with various manifestations of
the Hindu goddess Dakini or Dakiniten 荼枳尼天, who in turn is associated with Daikoku-ten 大黒天 (Skt. = Mahakala), the latter considered the Hindu god of Five Cereals.

Read more:
source : Mark Schumacher


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. Inari Fox Shrines and Festivals .
and
Fushimi Inari Taisha Festivals 伏見稲荷大社


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- #mikawa #toyohashi -
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Matsuyama Princess Daruma

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Princess Daruma Dolls from Matsuyama
松山の姫達磨



The Princess Daruma of Matsuyama comes with the following story.
When the legendary Empress Jinguu Koogoo (Jingu Kogo), which we met already in the story about Uto Daruma, stayed at the Hot Spring Doogo in Matsuyama on the island of Shikoku on her way to the Korean battlefield, she realized that she was pregnant. To pray for the safe delivery and healthy upbringing of her child, later to become the Emperor Oojin, she had a doll made and offered it to the local Gods.

This used to be called the "Roly-poly Doll of Doogo" (Doogo no Okiagari, Dogo no Okiagari). First it was made of wood but later became a papermachee doll. In the last days of February at the Spring Festival of the Matsuyama Shrine and the Iyo Hiko-no-Mikoto Shrine this doll has been sold since more than 200 years ago. It is now a talisman for easy delivery and the healthy upbringing of children and getting well after a disease.
With her fine features and real hair this doll is the Yokozuna of the Princess Daruma dolls.


. Jingu Kogo 神功皇后 and Japanese Dolls .


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Princess Daruma as a Pair  姫達磨一組

This is a different version of the Matsuyama Hime Daruma.


The Japanese spelling uses the Chinese characters for Daruma to describe this pair.
The Lady is in a red and the Husband in a dark blue or white brocade dress to represent the empress Jinguu and her husband, the emperor Chuuai. These dolls are usually given as a present for a wedding. Even nowadays these pairs in big sizes of more than 70 centimeters are sold at local stores all over the Island of Shikoku. The Princess of this pair will remind the young bride of her diligent role in the family and the respect she owes to her mother in law. This couple is also a talisman for good luck and is given to a woman at the day of the childbirth. Mother and the newborn baby will then be of good health and protected from evil for one year long.



Matsuyama.
It is the sister city of Freiburg in Germany, also a town with a long cultural history.


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The Auspicious Kichijoo Pattern
kichijoo monyoo  吉祥文様
. . . CLICK here for Photos !



Iyo-dolls / Iyobina 伊予比奈
Woodcarved Iyo-dolls (Iyobina 伊予比奈), another speciality of the area, which used to be called "Iyo" in former times.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !



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松山の姫達磨 Matsuyama no Himedaruma





Matsuyama Daruma from Ryooson Takumi 両村巧






Otoko Daruma 男達磨
hachimaki Daruma 鉢巻だるま





source
Regional Dolls from Shikoku
http://kyoudogangu.xii.jp/sikokuiyo.htm


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宇和島達磨 Uwajima Daruma
From Miyagawa 宮川作




source
Regional Dolls from Shikoku
http://kyoudogangu.xii.jp/sikokuiyo.htm



MORE
Daruma from Shikoku





Introduction

. Princess Daruma、Hime Daruma
姫達磨 姫だるま
 


. Folk Toys from Ehime .

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. Matsuyama and Masaoka Shiki (松山と正岡子規)  


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Kasugabe Dolls

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Dolls from Kasukabe (Kasukabe hariko)
 春日部張子 ?Kusagabe
Saitama prefecture



Fudo Myoo Oo 不動明王 Fudo Myo-O

. My Kasukabe Doll Collection .

Until Kintaro 金太郎

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source : www.kongohin.or.jp
Fudo from Igarashi san 五十嵐さん


. Mask of Fudo Myo-O / Kasugabe, Igarashi san  



A traditional way to make dolls, passed down in the family of Igarashi san.
五十嵐健二


. Fudo Myo-O 不動明王 Acala Vidyârâja - Introduction.


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Laughing Daruma Mask
(and more masks, click on the photo)

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There is also Momotaroo, Kintaroo and many others.
桃太郎、金太郎などもあります。

CLICK for more momotaro
Momotaro masks with the three animals.



Kintaro, the Strong Boy


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Kasukabe 春日部
is a small town in Saitama prefecture. It is famous for its folk craft, especially for traditional chests of Paulownia wood and toys for the New Year (hagoita 羽子板). The papermachee dolls are another speciality of this town.

Kasukabe Daruma is made in the tradition of the Musashino (Bushu 武州) papermachee dolls. In this area it is easy to get traditional Japanese paper and under the influence of Takasaki the production of Daruma goes back to the Meiji Restauration (1868). Many producers of Daruma have found their own style and expression for a Daruma face, but it takes an expert to recognize all these differences. Eyebrows and beard are not so strongly painted as in the Takasaki Daruma dolls and the Chinese characters FUKU IRI for bringing in Good Luck 福入 are painted on the belly.


. . . CLICK here for Photos of Kasukabe Dolls!


. Folk Toys from Saitama .

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Igarashi Kenji  五十嵐健二

CLICK for more photos

Igarashi san is in the second generation producing toys of papermachee (hariko) who works in the tradition of Goseki Hariko 五関の張子 and his repertoire contains more than 100 different types of dolls. He produces many humorous Darumas of different features (henkei Daruma 変形だるま) taking hints from historical figures, like Momotaro, Kintaro and Urashima Taro.
There are also composite figures of Daruma on a wild boar, Daruma holding Fukusuke, Daikoku or Okame, Daruma as a Goblin and many others.




Daruma on a namazu catfish fish
ナマズの上に達磨


. Namazu なまず / 鯰 catfish legends and toys .

. Urashima Taro 浦島太郎 .

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Dice with MONEY and a Futokoro Daruma
ふところだるま
to put in your purse for good luck


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Beckoning Cat and Kintaro

source : 春日部張子 Kasugabe Hariko


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Daruma on a wild boar
Year of the Wild Boar
Kasugabe Hariko 春日部張子




Inoshishi 猪 Wild Boar Papermachee Dolls

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Watoonai 和唐内 / 和藤内 Watonai

Watonai is a figure of the Chinese legend of early Ming dynasty.
This young boy is famous for his physical strenth, even subduing wild beasts. Usually he is depicted with a tiger. He becme famous in Japan since Chikamatsu Monzaemon wrote a Puppet Theater Play (bunraku) about him.
. . . CLICK here for Bunraku Photos !

鄭成功(ていせいこう) Teisei Koo [1624~1662]
The model for Watonai.

. Watonai (Koxinga) 和唐内 / 和藤内 and Tiger Toys .


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. Kasukabe Oshi-e Hagoita 羽子板  


. The Momotaro Legend 桃太郎 Peach Boy  

. The Kintaro Legend 金太郎 The Strong Boy Kintaro  

. Folk Toys with Fish .

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- #kasugabe #watonai -
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Himeji Daruma

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. Folk Toys from HYOGO - Kobe, Himeji .
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Papermachee Dolls from Himeji 姫路張子



Himeji Hariko Papermachee dolls, which are made by putting together multiple layers of Japanese washi paper, have been introduced from China in the Muromachi period. This strong paper is called henkogami 反故紙.
Especially during the Edo period, the making of papermachee dolls and toys prospered in the castle towns throughout Japan where an abundance of extra washi could be found.

It is said that in Himeji this handicraft originated with Toyo'oka Tadashichi. 豊岡直七
He learned the craft in Osaka and brought it back to Himeji, but he produced mainly masks and no Daruma, since they did not sell well.
During the Taisho period, the funny "Daruma with a Headband" (hachimaki Daruma) from Nagoya became quite popular and so the Himeji producers started making Daruma with a headband too. Today, the fourth generation of Toyo'oka's sons-in-law still retain this traditional art.

The families of Matsuo Takashi and Matsuo Masatoshi are the main producers nowadays, making mostly masks, papermachee dolls and some Daruma.
Takashi Matsuo (Main Family 本家) TEL: 0792-32-7762
Masatoshi Matsuo (Branch Family 分家) TEL; 0792-92-7509



The papermachee dolls from Himeji 姫路の張子 
are different from others, since they are made from some long-used models made of the same clay as rooftiles, so they are pretty strong and do not wear off as wooden blocks (kigata 木型) do in the course of time. Motives for the masks are long-nosed goblins (tengu 天狗), water goblins (kappa 河童), demons (oni 鬼), dogs, monkeys, rabbits, legendary figures such as Momotaroo and many others, about 50 different types altogether.

The dolls include little tigers that wiggle their heads, heads for lion dances (shishigashira 獅子頭), Daruma, Three Mountains or One Mountain (for the festival at a local shrine with that name) and many others.

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source : ameblo.jp/a-late-bloomer

Echigojishi Daruma 越後獅子達磨 lion dance from Echigo

a papermachee doll from Himeji 姫路張子

. Echigojishi 越後獅子 lion dance from Echigo .

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Mitsuyama Hariko, Hitotsuyama Hariko  
三つ山 一つ山張子




In many of Japan's Shinto Cults artificially constructed holymountains are revered as temporary seats of gods - vestiges, no doubt, of pre-Buddhist times.



Left: a bamboo basket with a stone-pine crown as a holy mountain on a litter from the Gion festival in Kyoto.
Right: cloth-veiled mountain about 10 metres high, with a shrine on top of it, as in Himeji at theMitsuyama festival.
source : negenter

You can see the colourful papermachee version of this "mountain", which is sold during the annual festival. These toys have gone out of production before the war, but are now back in vogue.


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Himeji Papermachee Masks  姫路張子の面


Papermachee masks from Himeji


姫路市 書写の里 美術工芸館
兵庫県姫路市書写1223番地
TEL:0792-67-0301 松尾 隆工房
兵庫県神崎郡香寺町田野1042-21
TEL:0792-32-7762
FAX:0792-32-7762


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Himeji Daruma  姫路達磨



He comes in three sizes and is rather longish. His head is small and the eyes are painted under large eyebrows. On his red robe the folds are painted in gold, sometimes with a pattern of Chinese flowers on the sides. His characteristic is the wide headband with blue dots.
There is a version without a headband and no eyes painted and anotherfunny one with a little
Octopus posing as Daruma (Tako Okiagari 蛸 起き上がり) . 




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source : www.city.himeji.lg.jp/koho/press/
. Kuroda Kanbei Yoshitaka 黒田官兵衛 孝高 .
(1546 - 1604) - and NHK 2014


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Seaweed Daruma from Daikaku-ji, Amagasaki  
尼崎大覚寺のこんぶ達磨




Since Amagasaki is quite close to Himeji, I will introduce this Daruma here.

This is a little talisman to ward off evil and bring good business. He is sold at the temple Daikaku-ji in Amagasaki during the Spring Festival. Since the Meiji period every year the temple prepares a little Daruma with a short jacket made from a bleached seaweed (konbu) for people who apply for it. On the seaweed the name and age of the person and his zodiac animal are written and then this is put up atthe Family Shelf of the Gods for daily prayer. The sheet of seaweed is fastened with a belt of an auspicious braided red and white cord (mizuhiki). This Daruma helps to ward off evil and disaster and takes on a cold on your behalf (migawari).
He is also called "Daruma whowards off evil" (yakuyoke Daruma 厄よけだるま).
When the year is over, you bring him back to the temple for consecration and apply for a new one.

The little Daruma is about 5 cm high and used to be made in Osaka buthe is now made in Kyoto and is usually called "Tiny Roly-Poly" (mameagari 豆上がり). His face is painted very simply and his head has a golden dot, therefore he is also called "Gold-headed Daruma" (kinten Daruma 金天だるま).

His existence is also based on a play of words. "To feel happiness" (yoro-kobu) becomes "Yoro-Konbu"; you feel happy about getting better after illness or if your daughter finds a good match. So the seaweed type called KONBU carries an auspicious meaning and is usually part of a meal at the New Year and other auspicious occasions.

. WKD- konbu 昆布 (こんぶ) kombu kelp .   

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Himeji Toy Museum 姫路玩具博物館
671-3 Nakaniro, Kodera-cho, Himeji

The museum was founded in 1974. Thanks to its physical scale and the depth of its collection, the museum has become a model for toy museums in Japan. .
- HP : japan-toy-museum.org - English



Octopus Daruma 蛸だるま tako Daruma
Seaweed Daruma from Daikaku-ji, Amagasaki  and more
尼崎大覚寺のこんぶ達磨 などなど - see above

JAPANESE TOY MUSEUM (Nihon Gangu Hakubutsukan) in Kodera, close to Himeji. It features 6 storehouse-type buildings in a peaceful, pastoral landscape, and houses local toys from all over Japan and about 120 countries worldwide. It has a total of 70,000 items and its visitors come from all over the world.

The owner Mr. Inoue and his family are very kind and grandmother plays with the children at the many open toy corners within the large compounds. Since it has an extensive website I suggest you visit there first. It is a good place to spend a rainy day with your kids and it is very well marked with many road signs so you cannot get lost looking for it. Even without kids it is a most interesting and fun place to learn about Japan and the world.

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Read more about Himeji Castle in my library:
Himeji Castle, by CHRIS BAMFORTH


CLICK for more photos

Himeji castle is the WHITE CASTLE, the white crane castle
shirasagi joo 白鷺城.
Its walls are all plastered, so that no fire arrows from the enemy could take hold. Even the wooden window poles are covered with metal and then plaster.
The heavy wooden doors are covered with metal plates, to make them impenetrable for fire arrows.


It is a world heritage site:
Himeji-jo is the finest surviving example of early 17th-century Japanese castle architecture, comprising 83 buildings with highly developed systems of defence and ingenious protection devices dating from the beginning of the Shogun period. It is a masterpiece of construction in wood, combining function with aesthetic appeal, both in its elegant appearance unified by the white plastered earthen walls and in the subtlety of the relationships between the building masses and the multiple roof layers.
source : whc.unesco.org


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The first station is Himeji 姫路 :
. Izumo Kaido 出雲街道 The Road of Izumo

WASHOKU . Dishes from Hyogo Prefecture and Himeji

. Folk Toys from HYOGO - Kobe, Himeji .

- #himejidolls #himejiyoys -
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